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Dear STEPers,
Greetings in the Lord Jesus Christ!
I just started reading through 1 Corinthians the other day and it struck me again how we have everything in Christ. Just listen to these amazing words:
"4 I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5 For in him you have been enriched in every way-- in all your speaking and in all your knowledge-- 6 because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. 7 Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful." (1 Cor 1:4-9)
That's mind-blowing stuff, isn't it? That in Christ we have:
- Been enriched in every way – that's all our speaking and all our knowledge (v5)
- The lack of no spiritual gift (v7)
- The assurance of being kept strong and blameless to the end (v8)
- A God who is faithful (v9)
I don't know how your year has started and how it might shape up but I want to encourage you to look up and not forget that empowered by His word and the indwelling of Christ, we have all the resources we need to tackle whatever may come our way this year and indeed every year. So as you serve Him this year, depend wholeheartedly on Christ, draw richly from His word and don't lose heart! For you lack nothing in the Lord Jesus Christ – and don't let anyone tell you otherwise!
It has been a great encouragement to Deborah and I to have had the chance to catch up with you all again and to hear about how your year has gone. We are still amazed at how you are persevering on in ministry, sometimes in quite trying circumstances. Our prayer for you is that you will not lose heart and you will not run out of steam. And the only way you can do that is if you keep focused on who we are in Christ and keep the main thing – the word at the center of your life, relationships/marriage and ministry – the main thing.
This has been a significant year for PT with the start of STEP and the Day Away. As the rest of you might have heard, the Day Away was a great time as we gathered under the word and soaked in what God was saying to us from Isa 40, Titus 2 (for the women) and the Jacuzzi (the boys had their praying and sharing time in the Jacuzzi)! I do hope we can do that again as it will help us to keep in close partnership and help us to refocus on our own priorities and how STEP can keep on helping us in our local ministries at church, university etc.
As for the rest of 2007 as a whole, there are two more STEP events I hope you will be able to come for and so be better equipped to serve God in your local context:
- March 24-25: Ministry Matters Weekend (David Jackman)
- July 12: STEP Training – "Preaching that Connects" (Mike Raiter)
Depending on how our year-end schedules look like, we will try to sort out details of the next STEP Day Away later on in the year. I will also pray that you guys will be able to meet up more regularly to pray and encourage one another in ministry.
Of course apart from these STEP-specific training events, I also hope that you will be praying for and inviting many to come for the other PT events this year. With David Jackman (March), Mike Raiter (July) and Don Carson (Oct) coming to minister to us, it promises to be a real feast of a year (please see the attachment for all the details). It would be so beneficial to your ministries for you to bring your youth group, bible study group, lay leaders, pastors etc. to the PT events so that they can hear the Bible expounded for themselves and catch on to our like-mindedness.
Till we next see each other again, let us continue to keep each other and all our ministries in prayer as we labour with His strength, by His Spirit, for the extension of His Kingdom and the sake of His glory.
Your partner in Christ,
Denesh Divyanathan
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